The Sleepover Solution

Pin It No, I'm not marketing a new book or anything like that. I have discovered the solution to sleepovers though, and what kind of person would I be if I kept this information to myself?

Here's the story: My youngest daughter has been pleading for her friend to spend the night. The problem is that her friend's house is about 30 minutes away from ours, so getting girls back and forth with gas prices being what they are has been an issue. Well, we're having VBS this week, so the girls have been together every day. So, it would seem that during VBS might be a good time for a sleepover. My younger daughter's best friend has a sister the same age as my oldest daughter, so it's really a fabulous thing. They travel in pairs, so neither of my girls feels left out, they both have a friend to play with. So Tuesday of VBS we decide it would be a good thing to have two extra girls come over for a sleepover. Everyone is so excited! Then on the way home from church with a car full of children it hits me how very tired my children are. (Why is it that VBS just wipes us all out anyway?) I started to think "hm, this sleepover might not be the best idea I've ever had." Four exhausted little girls, two sets of sisters ... hm, what could possibly go wrong here? LOL They did GREAT, btw. They played together and separately and spent most of the time outside.

Oh yeah, the solution part. *EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM WAS IN BED ASLEEP BY 9:30!* They even ASKED if they could go to bed. *shock* I'm way used to going in at 9:30 and saying "okay, it's time for bed." And again at 10:00, and at 10:30, and at 11:00 ... 11:30 (starting to feel a little less charitable at this point) ... midnight ... "STOP THAT GIGGLING AND GO TO SLEEP!" (I'm the mom who doesn't really like to be asleep with kids awake.)

So here it is, the sleepover solution. Get the kids good and tired before the sleepover begins, let them play outside the rest of the day, and then they'll actually ASK if they can go to bed!